{is this a holiday..} national white t shirt day
Happy White T-Shirt Day everyone!
btw this is an old photo of my son...not quite a white t shirt but close enough! |
This holiday celebrates the men and women who participated in a strike at General Motors in 1937. "These autoworkers helped the United Auto Workers (UAW) union to become the sole bargaining agent for General Motors autoworkers." As part of the symbolism of this strike, everyone wears a white shirt or blouse.
Note: This holiday started out as 'White Shirt Day' but some how over the years the title turned into White T-Shirt Day for those who didn't know the history of the holiday therefore created their own version of this day, giving birth to the title "White T Shirt Day" . This holiday mostly celebrates the fun of wearing the ever so popular white t-shirt instead of what it was originally intended to celebrate.
Origin of this Holiday
According to the UAW's website, the traditions of the original White Shirt Day is as follows: 1) Everyone must wear a white shirt or blouse 2)Your white shirt must not get dirtier than your boss's shirt 3) Safety and work rules must be followed.
This holiday is referred to as a "National" day- However, we did not find any congressional records or presidential proclamations for this day. Even though we didn't, this is still a holiday that is publicized to celebrate. So enjoy the day and have fun with it.
The Oshawa Strike, 1937 : (source)
On April 8, 1937, disputes between 4000 assembly line workers and General Motors management led to the Oshawa Strike, a salient event in the history of Canadian trade unionism. As the weight of the Great Depression slowly began to lift, demand for automobiles again began to grow. The workers sought higher wages, an eight hour workday, better working conditions and recognition of their union, the United Auto Workers (Local 222). The then-Liberal government of Mitchell Hepburn, which had, ironically, been elected on a platform of being the working man's friend, sided with the corporation and even brought in armed university students to break up any union agitation. Fortunately, these much-derided "Hepburn's Hussars" and "Sons of Mitches" were never needed as the union refused to be drawn into any violent act. The union and workers had the backing of the local population, other unions and the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation, and on April 23, two weeks after the strike started, the company gave in to most of the workers' demands, although -- pointedly -- it did not recognize the union.
so what to do in celebration? you can throw a party... tie-dye bash from shindigz
OR
you can download this free 8 x 10 printable i made for this special day in u.s. history.
click HERE to download.
enjoy!
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